There is a public issue that causes death of more than thousands of people in the United States. It is not categorized as one of the classic disease that goes around the country, but it is one of the biggest problems that Americans face each year. Motor vehicle injuries have been part of public issues for decades and many things has been done to fix it. As one of the leading causes of death, finding solutions and preventing it is very important. Motor vehicle injuries are a major public issue and there needs to be a great solution to prevent it.
Motor vehicle accidents happen more often than what is pleasing. According to Driver Knowledge, more than 90 people die in car accidents every day and 3 million people in the US are injured every year in car accidents. This statistic alone can put a panic and anxiety on people when it comes to driving on the streets. Another example of this issue is CDC releases a statement that motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death in the first three decades of American’s lives. With all these statistics gathered, there are many reasons why motor vehicle injuries have been one of the top public issues that Americans face every year. There are different classifications when it comes to causes of motor vehicle accidents. The several factors that goes into these accidents such as individuals who do not obey traffic laws, distracted drivers, and drunk driving.
Many accidents happen due to disobedient drivers who do not obey traffic laws. As reported on the findings of an eight-year study conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there were on average 1,578 fatalities each year resulting from two-vehicle traffic crashes at intersections controlled by traffic signals. There are approximately 51% of those fatal crashes were caused by drivers who ran red lights and 29% were caused by drivers who failed to yield the right-of-way at traffic signals. As a driver, I have witnessed many car accidents that are caused by drivers who failed to obey laws. Many of which could have been avoided if one or two drivers just followed the traffic laws of the road. As CreedLaw states, “A driver may also be liable for an accident due to his or her intentional or reckless conduct.” The NHTSA defines aggressive driving as a progression of unlawful driving actions such as exceeding the speed limit, improper or excessive lane changing, failing to signal, or passing on the shoulder. However, not every motor accident and injuries happen by another car accident. Another law that many people break is not wearing seatbelt. According to Driver Knowledge, 1 in 7 people do not wear a seat belt while driving, which contributes to people getting injured or death. These many disobedient drivers are just one of the many factors contributes towards motor vehicle injuries that happens upon many individuals.
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Another factor that should be considered when it comes to motor vehicle accidents are distracted drivers. A statistic that is derived from Driver Knowledge stated, more than nine people are killed due to distracted driving. There are three main types of distraction: visual (where the diver takes their eyes off the road), manual (where the driver takes their hands off the wheel), and cognitive (where the driver takes their mind off of driving. The main cause of distracted diving is texting or phone usage. Distraction was reported as a factory in nearly 1 in 5 crashes in which someone was injured. Distracted driving is one of the many factors that many individuals can easily be involved in, especially in this day of age. The majority of the population are phone users and this is the modern era where nobody can seem to put their phone down. There have been many instances while driving where people are bold enough to text with their head down, while using their phone and not even looking at the road. Distracted driving can increase motor vehicle injury and death and this is just one of the reason why motor vehicle injuries are still part of the public health issues list.
Another factor that plays a major role in motor vehicle injuries is drunk driving. According to CreedLaw, someone in this country dies in an alcohol-related crash in every thirty minutes. Last year alone, over one million people were injured in alcohol-related traffic crashes. Driving under the influence has been one of the major issues that not only public health about the law has been trying to prevent for years. Drunk driving heavily impairs the driver’s judgement to an extreme level that no matter how confident the driver is, it will highly result in motor vehicle injury or death. There is an irony when it comes to driving under the influence; where most of the time the driver survives while the victims either end up paralyzed or dead. Another consequence that ties into driving under the influence is that the driver is liable for the injuries that they caused and not only that, the person or place who served the driver the drinks may be liable for damages too. This is another instance where these consequences could easily be prevented, however, many individuals are still willing to themselves and others in harm’s way.
With all of these factors that causes motor vehicle injuries, there have been many ways to make sure they are preventable. The CDC considers motor vehicle injuries as a winnable battle. According to CDC, motor vehicle crash deaths cost the nearly $44 billion in medical expenses and work loss costs in a single year. These major consequences drove the government and many companies to make sure that motor vehicle injuries are preventable. When it comes to the accidents that were caused due to disobedient drivers, there have been prevention status reports released by the CDC that highlight policies and practices touching on public health issues such as motor vehicle safety. There is also the Parents are the Key campaign where the parents, pediatricians and communities are offered information and tools to promote safety driving for teens. Education is a big solution when it comes to preventing drivers who do not obey the traffic laws. Having the knowledge of what happens and the domino results of doing a simple break of traffic law can result in a big consequence that may change the driver’s life or the victim forever. Moreover, one of the biggest improvement that public health has seen when it comes to preventing motor vehicle injuries is the usage of seat belts. According to CDC, the demonstrated effectiveness of primary seat belt laws created an opportunity for near-term success in lowering motor vehicle-related deaths. By using primary enforcement seat belt laws that cover everyone in the car have been one of the reasons of preventing this issue. This primary enforcement law means that a police officer can pull a car over and hand a ticker to whoever is not wearing a seat belt. Wearing seat belts can make a major impact and differences for the driver’s safety and life.
One of the biggest major campaign that public health has done when it comes to preventing motor vehicle injuries is campaigning against distracted driving and driving under the influence. Everybody has seen the commercials, billboards and signs when on the road about the consequences of doing either of those issues. The federal government is evaluating and encouraging use of proven programs and policies that can educate the public about how to stay safe on the road. The state officials are reducing drinking and driving by using sobriety checkpoints and requiring interlock use for people convicted of drinking and driving, starting with their first conviction. While all these laws and campaigns are being enforced towards the population, each individual should just be aware to always buckle up, stay sober if known to use a vehicle, and be attentive on the road by not using a phone.
Motor vehicle injuries are considered a winnable battle by CDC, but it still continues to cause injuries and deaths among the masses. The several factors of disobeying laws, distracted driving, and driving under the influence are some of the major roles that plays within this issue. These factors can easily be avoided without the help of federal governments or state officials. As an individual, everyone should just be aware of what will happen before trying to break a law, before picking up the phone, and before deciding to get into the driver seat knowing they are under the influence. Having the knowledge and education that it does not only affect the driver, but it affects everyone when we decide to do these factors. Motor vehicle injuries will continue to be a public health issue, but with enforcement of knowledge, it will soon no longer be a public health issue to the population.
